In Sierra Leone climate change is leading to more extreme rainfall & flooding with periods of extreme heat & drought. Subsistence farmers have to move both upland & swamp rice farms every two years due to loss of soil fertility. This 'slash & burn' land clearance causes deforestation & erosion, aggravating the problems. Families see no way to develop their land & create permanent farms. Households headed by women are particularly vulnerable & often have no way to grow food or earn money.

Since 2021 we have piloted agroforestry in community women's farms, planting crops within alleys of nitrogen fixing trees to enrich the soil & create permanent farms, reducing slash & burn clearance. Crop success has led more individual farmers to take up the technique. We also teach crop rotation with groundnuts in the rice farms, trial drought resistant crops & plant fruit & native trees. Income from the farms enables women to set up microfinance schemes ,supported by local 'tree champions'.